Pa. horticultural society lays off 22 employees

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society is announcing layoffs three months after its annual flower show recorded its lowest attendance in more than a decade.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports the society announced Wednesday it was cutting 22 of 133 full- and part-time positions. Two others are being downgraded to part-time.

The group's president, Drew Becher, says it would have had a $1.8 million deficit when the fiscal year ends Sunday. The layoffs are expected to save $1.2 million, the amount of lost ticket sales from the flower show.

Becher says he's shuffled his management team and instituted pay cuts for top earners, including himself.

This year's flower show drew 225,000 visitors, 17 percent fewer than 2012. Becher has blamed Philadelphia TV stations for hyping up a snowstorm that never materialized.

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